


You Won't Ever Be Lonely

by FallingArtist



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: Birthday, F/F, Fluff, Happy Ending, Post 1x06, brief look into Penelope's past, just a bit of Angst, posie - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-09
Updated: 2018-12-17
Packaged: 2019-09-15 06:56:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16928604
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallingArtist/pseuds/FallingArtist
Summary: Penelope hates her birthday and never celebrates it. Last year Josie gave her the best birthday ever, but this time they're not together and she's not around...except maybe she is.Post 1x06





	1. Never alone on your birthday

**Author's Note:**

> I was trying to drop the habit of writing fanfictions, but then Posie happened and I'm back down the rabbit hole. Also, there's not nearly enough fanfics for this ship and we aren't gonna get any posie content in the show for like 7 weeks, so I've decided to help out. 
> 
> There's fluff. There's angst for Penelope, but Josie doesn't cause it! There's more fluff. Like, really, a lot.   
> There's probably plenty of mistakes too, since I wrote this at night instead of sleeping or studying.

**Chapter 1: Never alone on your birthday**

 

Josie and Lizzie took some time off school to be with their mother, after the traumatic events on their birthday. After the first four weeks, Lizzie insisted on staying another month, because she was still struggling with it all. Of course, Josie stayed with her, because she knew her sister needed her.

At the end of the following month, Lizzie still begged for another week, which their parents granted without judgement. This time, though, Josie decided to go back to school without her twin. She claimed she didn’t want to miss any more classes, and her family had no reason to doubt her, despite the oddity of her request.

Josie wouldn’t normally leave Lizzie behind, especially when she was in a vulnerable state, but there was a date coming up that she just couldn’t bring herself to miss. She had made a promise, after all.

 

~~~ ~~ ~~~

 

Penelope and MG were studying in the library, the witch had her head buried in a textbook of charms, while the boy was trying to memorise what he needed to know to pass a vampire history test. However, MG couldn’t concentrate, he kept looking around to find a distraction, any excuse to strike up conversation and take a break from his studies.

Eventually, he groaned loudly and closed his book. “I don’t know how they manage to make this so boring, considering vampire history is actually pretty damn exciting.”

Penelope let out a dramatic sigh. “Why did I ever think studying with you could be a good idea?” she whispered mostly to herself.

MG pouted, then he leaned on the table, thinking about something more interesting to talk about.

“Hey! Isn’t your birthday coming up?”

It was Penelope’s turn to groan. She hated her birthday. The only good memory from celebrating her birthday had to do with her ex and thinking about her right now was not a good idea.

“This Saturday, right? How are you celebrating?”

Penelope thought about telling the truth, just saying that she isn’t doing anything, but then he would want to throw her a party or something, and she was definitely not in the mood for that. He was a considerate and sweet friend, but no one could make her like her birthday. Or almost no one, but it’s not like that person was an option.

Instead, she shrugged, and said, “My mum should be coming to visit, I’m going to celebrate with her.”

Penelope made it sound like that was actually a plan, and MG was none the wiser, because the only other birthday of hers he had been around for was last year’s and she spent it with Josie. He couldn’t know that her mother always promised to visit, and always inevitably cancelled at the last minute. But he did know that Penelope didn’t get to see her family often, so he was very happy for her.

“That’s awesome!” he beamed at her, before she offered a forced smile and convinced him to get back to studying.

 

 

When she got back to her dorm room, Penelope thought of how she was going to spend the weekend. Her mother hadn’t even bothered to call and make the empty promise to visit this year. Penelope could just hang out with her friends, she could let them drag her to some party and get drunk, but drowning her misery in cheap booze was a low she wasn’t ready to touch yet.

She knew she would just end up baking herself some pity cupcakes and spend the evening reading a new book from cover to cover. She could get MG to have a movie night with her, but she honestly didn’t feel like being around people.

She had always hated her birthday. Her parents were very absent even when she still lived at home. They were important people and travelled a lot for work. Most years, on her birthday she’d be left with her grandmother and her aunt, who would bake her a cake, give her a few presents, and then leave her to her books. They tried to be sweet, but Penelope just wanted a birthday with her parents.

She grew up in an isolated area, where they were the only witches in a community of humans, so her parents had been very reluctant to let her interact too much with the locals. Which meant she didn’t really grow up with friends, the only ones she did have lived too far away to be present for her birthday.

When they moved to live in a bigger town, Penelope was finally able to make some more friends. She ended up with a small crew, they weren’t very close, but they were good friends nonetheless. That was the first time she spent her birthday with someone other than her grandmother and aunt, at least the first time she could remember. Her friends dragged her to a party, wanting her to have fun but ignoring that Penelope hated parties, especially frat parties crowded with drunk and horny teenagers making out in every corner.

The year after, they took her to a disco out of town instead, hoping that the change of scenery would make her enjoy herself more, but Penelope still disliked everything about the loud environment.

The first time she was actually happy on her birthday was last year, when Josie took over. Penelope’s father had called after her mum had, he had promised that they would both be there to celebrate her sixteenth birthday, and she had believed him. She had believed him, because she was used to her mother lying, not so much to her father doing it. Her father usually just left it to her mother to make plans or cancel them. Hearing both her parents promising to be there, Penelope had believed them for the first time in years.

But inevitably, the evening before her birthday, her mum had called to say how sorry they were, because they couldn’t make it. They would visit the week after instead. They did not. She didn’t see them until she went home for Christmas. They were apologetic, as always, and had a dozen beautiful presents for her, none of them awesome enough to make up for their constant absence.

She had told Josie about her parents cancelling hoping to come off as unbothered, but her girlfriend had seen right through her. On the day of her birthday, Josie woke her up with freshly made cupcakes – she had burnt all of them at the first try and got MG to help her with the second batch, because she was a hopeless baker.

Sitting on her bed now, book ready in her lap, Penelope let herself remember last year.

 

_They had breakfast in bed and then Josie gave her a few presents from some friends: a book from MG, a weird crystal ball from one of Penelope’s other friends, and, surprisingly, a gift card from Lizzie that came with a note saying “To buy yourself a new girlfriend. Leave my sister alone.” And, while Penelope strongly disliked Lizzie, she did crack up at her gift, which Josie certainly forced her to get._

_At lunch, Josie left her with her friends saying she needed to go take care of something urgently. Penelope assumed it was about Lizzie and tried not to be too sad, hoping to see her girlfriend again before dinner. But Josie came back some twenty minutes later, holding a cake with candles on it and singing Happy Birthday._

_Penelope did not tear up at that. She was not holding back tears at all._

_Josie actually sat with Penelope’s friends, whom she barely knew, and they all shared the cake. Penelope thought her heart couldn’t feel more full and warm._

_In the afternoon, Josie’s father called her because he needed to talk with the twins, and Penelope was content to wait in her room for Josie to come back. She started reading the book MG got her, and she got so lost in it that she almost didn’t notice the time passing. When it had been two hours, she texted Josie to ask if everything was okay with her family. No reply. She waited some more before trying again. An hour later, she decided to call. Josie was not picking up the phone, so Penelope resolved to texting her sister. Lizzie told her nothing was wrong, but she didn’t know where Josie was, saying she went out because she had someone to meet._

_Penelope couldn’t make sense of it, she didn’t understand why Josie wouldn’t even tell her, but she calmed down when she finally got a reply from her girlfriend, saying she was on her way back. She told Penelope to dress fancy, because they were going out._

_Later, when Josie picked her up, she explained that she had to do some last minute setting up. Josie had changed and was now wearing a pretty green dress, her hair falling nicely on her bare shoulders. Penelope’s breath caught in her throat. She herself was wearing a night blue dress, shorter than Josie’s, with sleeves ending mid-arm._

_“You look beautiful,” Josie told her. Penelope struggled to reply, surprise still written all over her face. Josie chuckled and took her hand, tugging her out of the room and into the hallway. “Come on, we have a car waiting.”_

_That night, Josie took her to a fancy but quiet restaurant on a lake. It was romantic, it was private, it was perfect. After dinner they took a walk around the lake and found a magical spot under the leaves of a weeping willow._

_When Penelope thanked her girlfriend for the best birthday ever, Josie kissed her and promised: “You won’t be alone on your birthday again, I won’t let you.”_

_So maybe Penelope did tear up a little at that._


	2. A promise is a promise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Penelope's birthday and she did not expect Josie to show up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2 is here, anyone excited?

**Chapter 2: A promise is a promise**

 

On Saturday, Penelope pretty much locked herself in her room. She decided to skip breakfast, she didn’t have the energy to pretend everything was okay, and she didn’t need her friends to feel sorry for her.

By lunch, her mother hadn’t even called. Penelope chose to leave the school grounds to get something to eat elsewhere, so she wouldn’t have to run into someone she knew and make conversation. As she was wandering the town, she got a text from her mum briefly apologising for not having called yet and promising to call later in the evening.

Penelope was ready to throw her phone against the wall, instead she opted to turn it off for a few hours and take a long walk around the public gardens before heading back to the dorm.

She spent the rest of the afternoon reading her books, trying not to think about last year again. She couldn’t stop thinking about Josie, though, not after the kiss they had shared on the twins’ birthday a couple of months back.

What did it mean? Was Josie not over her? Did Penelope still stand a chance? Should she go for it and try to get her back? Penelope knew there was no way she’d get over Josie any time soon, but she had assumed Josie was doing better in that department, since she had shown interest for Rafael. At that thought she had to push down the jealousy she had no right to feel.

She shook her head and told herself she would just take her chance, if she was given one, and let Josie move on if it didn’t work out. She thought about their breakup, about how she actually regretted that day. She wished she would have tried harder, Josie surely deserved it.

She was upset that Josie would always let her sister interfere with their relationship, but, in the end, it had been Penelope who let Lizzie come between them. Penelope let Lizzie win, Josie was doing her best to find a balance, no matter how much she was struggling and how small the results were.

Lost in her thoughts, she jumped when somebody knocked on her door. She groaned and reluctantly got up from the bed, expecting to see MG standing in the hallway. But she was not prepared for the sight that greeted her as soon as she opened the door.

None other than Josie Saltzman was standing outside, hands in her pockets, wearing high-waist jeans and a cute light blue top with a brown leather jacket – faux leather, Penelope could bet – thrown over it. In her casual, but cured, outfit she looked so hot that Penelope opened her mouth to say something and wasn’t surprised to hear no sounds coming out.

“Dress warm, it’s kinda chilly outside.”

Penelope blinked, still unable to formulate a response, the best she could offer was a dumbfounded “What?”

Josie laughed – and maybe, just maybe, Penelope’s heart skipped a beat. “What, did you already have dinner plans?”

Not many people could take Penelope Park by surprise, and even less people could render her speechless, Josie Saltzman was clearly the exception.

“First of all, aren’t you supposed to be away?” Penelope finally asked, to then add more softly, “And what are you doing here?”

“I was, I came back early. And well, that depends. Do you have plans already?”

Josie’s voice was soft, but confident, like Penelope hadn’t heard it in a while.

“Hm, no?” she mumbled, still confused. A part of her brain was putting the pieces together already, but it was likely delusional thinking.

“Then go get ready, we don’t wanna run late.”

Josie gave her a small smile and Penelope was a goner.

“Where are we going?”

Josie laughed softly again, “That is a surprise. Just wear something nice and casual, but warm.”

Penelope retreated back into her room, sending Josie one last look before she carefully shut the door, as if afraid that the girl wouldn’t be there when she opened it again.

Penelope kept the loose trousers she was wearing and threw on a dark top that she had accessorised herself.  She didn’t want to make Josie wait too long and run the risk that she would just get tired and leave. She grabbed her leather jacket, her purse, and hurried out of the room.

Josie was leaning against the wall, waiting for Penelope and staring at her phone. For a moment she looked nervous, but Penelope didn’t notice, her mind too occupied with coming to terms with what was going on.

“You ready?” Josie asked, putting her phone away.

Penelope nodded, she started following Josie, trying to get her to say where they were going, but the other witch just smiled and told her she couldn’t ruin the surprise.

They took a cab to the other side of town, then Josie guided her through the streets until they reached the outskirt of Mystic Falls, where the houses lost ground to the forest. Penelope kept following Josie along the treeline, more and more confused as to where they were headed.

Ten minutes later, they stopped in front of a small diner that definitely said “Closed”. Penelope was hesitant, having troubles believing that Josie would be breaking them into a local diner. But her ex tugged on her hand and went to knock on the door. They didn’t have to wait long before a man swung open the door and gave Josie a bear hug.

“Hi, uncle T,” Josie greeted him as soon as her feet touched the ground again.

The man gave the girl a smile and then turned to Penelope, his chin moving in her direction. “Is that your friend?”

Josie introduced them briefly before the man left bidding them a good night.

Penelope watched him leave, before Josie gently tugged on her hand again, encouraging her to step inside. Josie let her walk in first and Penelope let out a surprised gasp.

The room was lit with candles, the atmosphere was calm and comfortable, it was warm, and all the tables were empty except for one which was set up for two. It was a booth just next to a window that looked out into the forest. Penelope took a few steps closer, and looking through the window she noticed little lights hanging from the trees immediately outside, making the forest look less like a threat and more like a place of wonders.

It should have felt all too romantic and brought back enough memories to make her heart ache, instead Penelope felt utterly comfortable, calm, and safe even from her own regret.

She felt herself tear up, and she waited to get control of her emotions before she turned around to look at Josie, who had stepped into the diner and silently closed the door behind her.

“How…?”

Josie gave her a shy smile, “Uncle T is a family friend, but he really feels like an uncle. It was a long shot, asking him to have this place all to ourselves tonight, but he agreed in a heartbeat. He even helped me set everything up,” she shrugged. “So, here we are. Do you like it?”

Josie was looking at her carefully, almost bracing herself for Penelope’s answer. And Penelope could only let out a shocked laugh.

“Do I- Josie, this is amazing. Thank you.”

Josie smiled, then she was about to turn around and get their dinner, but Penelope had to ask, “Why would you do all of this for me?”

“A promise is a promise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I should probably explain better why Josie is doing this, but I wanted to try and keep the narration from Penelope's pov. 
> 
> Chapter 3 on Thursday!


	3. Don’t ruin it

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dinner and Penelope gets a call.

**Chapter 3: Don’t ruin it**

 

They were having dinner, and Penelope still couldn’t believe all of this was happening. Josie had made sure to have some of her favourite food, completed with her favourite dessert, Oreos ice-cream – though only Josie knew that, as far as everyone else was concerned, her favourite was crème brûlée.

They were enjoying their dessert and talking quietly about anything and everything that crossed their minds. It was always so easy to lose herself in a conversation with Josie when they were alone. She could talk to the other girl for hours and wouldn’t feel the time pass, she would never get bored of hearing Josie talk about something that she liked.

And Josie would always be interested in listening to what Penelope had to say, she would listen to Penelope go on about anything, no matter how boring or silly, and she would make her feel like it mattered. Josie was the most caring person in the world, and she always gave Penelope all of her attention when they were alone. Really, it didn’t matter who Josie was with, she’d always be nice enough to listen carefully to everything and remember it all.

Penelope had never gotten used to it, having someone who doesn’t only listen to her like she’s actually interested, rather than out of mere politeness, but who also remembers the things that she says. Penelope had accused Josie of giving too much attention to her sister and too little time to her girlfriend, but any time that Josie did spend with her she made count. Anything that Penelope had told her, she would recall.

Penelope knew Josie better than most, but the other way around was also true. They paid attention to each other, it didn’t matter how small of a detail it might have been. Penelope had memorised Josie’s milkshake order the very first time she heard it. Josie had always been careful not to speak or have the music on too loud whenever she was with Penelope, even though Penelope had only casually mentioned it once in passing that she wasn’t fond of loud noises, and she had never shown problems with other people being loud – despite how it actually bothered her.

“So, why did you leave early if Lizzie is still at your mum’s?”

Josie hid a blush as she answered, “I told you, P. A promise is a promise, and I wouldn’t have broken it.”

“You made that promise when we were together. And we’re- I mean, we aren-”

Josie shook her head, “It doesn’t matter. I would have made that promise even if we hadn’t been together. You don’t deserve to be alone on your birthday, and I told you that you wouldn’t have to be again.”

Penelope couldn’t help but smile and blush a little. This girl was still full of surprises.

 

As they finished eating, Josie went to get something from behind the counter. When she handed it to Penelope and whispered, “Happy birthday”, Penelope shook her head.

“You already did all of this, a present is really overkill,” she smirked.

Josie shrugged, “Just open it, will you?”

Penelope chuckled and did as she was told. The shape of the present gave away its nature, and as Penelope unwrapped it and read the title of the book, she held back another little gasp. She thought she was good at knowing what Josie wanted, she thought she was sneaky and did a great job at finding out what the other girl wished for and wasn’t willing to get herself. But apparently Josie was just as good at reading her. How could she know that was the book Penelope had been looking for all year?

When Penelope looked up at her, ready to ask how she could possibly have known, Josie beat her to it.

“You put in four requests at the library for it in the past year. And I’m pretty sure you even went to look for it at the public library in town.”

Penelope broke into a laugh. “Are you stalking me now?” she joked, without meaning anything bad by it. 

Before Josie could say anything back, Penelope’s phone rang. Penelope was going to ignore it until she saw her mother showing up in the caller ID. She hesitated, she really didn’t want to answer and potentially have her mother ruin her good mood.

“Penny, it’s not gonna ruin the night if you answer her.”

Josie’s voice was soft, and the use of the nickname was enough to make Penelope melt. She was right, she could answer it and still not let her mother ruin their night. So Penelope picked up her phone from where she had placed it on the table, she gave Josie another look, sighed, and answered the call.

Josie silently collected their plates from the table and took them to the diner’s kitchen, so that she could give the other girl some space.

Penelope’s mum apologised for not calling earlier, then asked how she was spending her birthday. Penelope only offered a vague “We went out for dinner,” letting her mother assume she was with a group of friends.

_“That’s brilliant, sweetheart! I hope you’re having a great time.”_

Penelope rolled her eyes and resisted the urge to vocalise her annoyance. “Yes, mum, I’m enjoying myself.”

_“Are you going to a party later?”_

“No, mum, I am not having a party.”

_“Oh, honey, why not? You should go have fun with your friends.”_

“I don’t need a party to have fun,” Penelope replied, just as Josie appeared back from the door of the kitchen.

Josie went to get the rest of the dishes, but Penelope reached out her hand to stop her, pointing to Josie’s seat with her eyes in a silent request for her to stay. Josie nodded and sat back in her booth as Penelope smiled at her gratefully.

_“Well, you decide how to spend your birthday, sweetie, I just think you should try to have fun more.”_

Her mother was the kind of person to enjoy any sort of formal – or informal – party that her high-society friends would throw for any minor occasion, and she had a hard time believing her daughter wasn’t the same. Which is only one of the many reasons Penelope liked her father better, she had more in common with him, they liked similar things and there would be more activities for them to share. Except he was, if possible, even more absent than her mother.

Penelope closed her eyes and felt her hand clench into a fist, but Josie reached out to pry her fingers open and held her hand between hers, palm against palm. She looked up and Josie was smiling at her, there was some sadness in it, but mostly it was just tender, and Penelope felt her heart ache.

She pulled herself together and finally answered her mother: “I’m having plenty of fun, mum, you don’t need to worry.”

She tried not to make it sound bitter, though she wasn’t sure she had succeeded, since her mother decided to end the conversation there.

_“Ok, well, happy birthday, honey, enjoy your night! Your dad and I love you!”_

Penelope forced herself to say it back, before she almost threw the phone away from herself. Josie stopped her and took the object from her hand, resting it on the table in one piece.

Her mother hadn’t even mentioned coming to see her. Her father hadn’t even bothered talking to her on the phone.

“Hey,” Josie tried to get her attention softly. “Maybe he’ll call later.”

They both knew that he wouldn’t, and Penelope took her hand away from where Josie was still holding it and asked where the restroom was.

Josie tried to talk to her again, but Penelope just asked about the bathroom again and left the table.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter on Saturday! Though, I'm toying with the idea of a bonus chapter after that, it would be shorter, but sweet? Not sure though, I haven't decided if I want them to get back together after this.


	4. I see you when I close my eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe the night isn't over, some bit of magic is still waiting for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just writing this kinda made me happy, so I hope you enjoy it!

**Chapter 4: I see you when I close my eyes**

 

She spent almost twenty minutes in front of the mirror, demanding that she did not cry. She shouldn’t have answered her mother’s call. She didn’t want to ruin the night that had been so perfect, but she felt like it was definitely ruined now. Josie had tried to talk to her, likely to comfort her, and Penelope had just left the room.

She slammed her fist on the sink and let a few tears fall. Then there was a single, gentle knock at the door and she held her breath.

“Penny, are you alright?” Josie’s voice came through the door.

Hearing her nickname again just made more tears fall.

“Do you want me to leave you alone? We can go back to the dorms if you don’t feel like staying out anymore.”

“Fuck,” Penelope whispered harshly to herself. “Get your shit together, Penelope.”

She washed her face and went to open the door, trying to smile at Josie with some fake confidence.

“Sorry. Had to fix my make-up.”

She walked back to the booth and Josie followed behind her.

“Do you want to go back?” she asked again.

“I thought we were done anyway.” Penelope meant it as honest confusion, but she realised it came out harsher than she thought when Josie looked down and shuffled her feet.

“Right, yeah, sure, we can head back.”

“Hey, hey, I didn’t mean it like that. I was just honestly wondering, what else could you have planned?” Penelope reached out to touch Josie’s arm in a gesture that she hoped would be reassuring, and she ended her sentence with a chuckle to diffuse the tension.

Josie looked nervous now, and Penelope knew that she had indeed planned more. She just stared at Josie in wonder as the girl started mumbling something. When she couldn’t make sense of the other girl’s words, Penelope continued.

“Whatever else you’ve planned, I’m on board, JoJo. Lead the way,” she said softly, hand still on Josie’s arm.

Josie looked up at hearing her nickname, and then stammered a little. “I mean, it’s not really much. I just thought that, maybe- maybe you’d want to go for a walk. I mean, I know it’s dark, and, like, the forest isn’t, like, exactly roman- hum, isn’t super nice at night, but, hum, I kinda-”

Penelope loved it when she rambled.

Josie let out a frustrated sigh, then said all in one breath:

“I sort of put up lights along this one path because I thought it’d be nice to take a walk after dinner and I know you really like the forest but I also didn’t want us to get lost or run into trouble on your birthday.”

Penelope wasn't sure how to react to that, she just wanted to kiss her right then and there. She resisted the urge, but she knew Josie had caught her staring at her lips. She couldn’t bring herself to care though, it was on Josie anyway for planning such a thoughtful and breath-taking birthday for her ex of all people.

Penelope didn’t answer right away, instead, once she snapped out of her Josie-induced daze, she went to grab her phone, she turned it off and put it away in her bag like the item had no importance at all. She didn't care if her dad was going to call later, Josie had all of her attention - not that it was much of a surprise, Josie always had her full attention. 

“Lead the way,” she repeated as she turned to Josie once again.

 

Josie had really taken the time to light up a path in the forest for them to follow. It was incredible. Magical lights seemed to hang from the trees, like the ones that had been on the trees outside next to the diner’s window. They were white, blue, green, yellow, sometimes purple. They would have taken Penelope’s breath away, if the girl next to her hadn’t already done that.

They walked for an hour, at times in silence, at others making idle conversation, pointing out something among the trees, looking for little creatures that might be hanging out in the undergrowth.

Josie pointed out some fireflies that were crossing the path ahead of them. Another time, Penelope stopped them just so they could look at some magical dragonflies that were just now coming out to play under the light of the moon.

They laughed and giggled and sometimes hey held each other’s hand when they were tugging one another towards some little wonder.

 

As the path started to curve to make its way back to the streets, Josie pulled Penelope to the side, where a tree was hit just right by the moonlight.

Josie gasped as she went to check what she thought she had seen. Penelope followed, curious as to what had caught the witch’s attention this time.

“Penelope, look! That’s a heart’s mirror!” she said, excitedly pointing at a little hole between twigs that were so intricated that they seemed knotted together.

Penelope had never heard of such a thing, and Josie was quick to explain:

“The moonlight shines through the branches, and because of how intricated these twigs are, if the tree has any magic in it, they will cause an effect similar to the moon reflecting into a lake. The magic in the tree barely reflects the moon on a single twig, but because there are so many all knotted together- do you see it? They kinda reflect the light of the moon a little.”

Penelope got closer to take a better look, and Josie was right, the light of the moon did seem to be reflected by the twigs and it did remind her of the reflection the moon would have on a water surface. The knotted twigs were glowing softly from the way the magic inside them was reflecting the moonlight.

“They say that if you look into it when the moonlight is shining through it, you’ll see your heart's deepest desire.”

Josie made a gesture with her hand to encourage her to try.

Penelope hummed as she leaned down to look into the heart’s mirror, like Josie had called it. She wasn’t really buying the idea that looking through a bunch of tiny branches knotted together under the moonlight would show her anything, but she humoured Josie anyway. But when she did look through it, her heart began beating so fast in her chest she thought it was going to explode.

“So? What do you see?”

In that moment, Penelope was too mesmerised by the magic to lie, so she didn’t.

“You.”

Josie fell silent, but Penelope didn’t straighten up to see her reaction, she was still lost in the magic from the tree. She was not really seeing anything, it was more a matter of what she was feeling. It was like there was another heartbeat in her chest and she just knew it was Josie’s.

Then a hand gently grabbed her arm and tugged Penelope away from the branches. Penelope didn’t get a chance to take a good look at Josie or say anything before Josie was kissing her.

She immediately kissed back, no hesitation in her movements as she brought her hand up to Josie’s neck, her other hand holding Josie’s elbow. Josie's lips were pressing gently but surely against her own. Penelope kissed back softly, mindful of Josie's movements, in case the girl was going to pull back. But instead of pulling back, Josie just deepened the kiss, her mouth opening against Penelope's, their lips meeting with a little more force.

Josie's hand moved to her waist to tug her closer and Penelope braced her hand on Josie's upper arm as their bodies collided. She moaned softly into Josie's mouth and tried to pull her even closer with the hand curved around her neck. Penelope moved her hand to Josie's back as the other girl grabbed her shirt in her fist to keep Penelope close. 

They kissed for a long moment, before finally pulling away for air. Penelope didn’t let Josie go far as she tugged her close and rested her forehead against hers. 

“Wanna take a look too?” Penelope whispered when she got her breath back.

But Josie shook her head and kissed her again, pressing her lips against Penelope’s and rocking the other girl back. This kiss was shorter, and Josie soon pulled back to resume their position, so close their breathing was mixing.

“I don’t need to look into magically intertwined twigs to know what they’ll show me. I already see you every time I close my eyes.”

It was said in a whisper, but Penelope could swear it was already carved into her heart.

She kissed Josie again, like she was never going to stop.

 

 

They walked back to the dorms hand in hand, a warmth spell protecting them from the cold.

“Did you enjoy yourself tonight?”

Penelope smirked and started one of her sexual innuendos.

“I mean, the dessert was better last year but- ”

She didn’t get to finish as Josie slapped her arm and they both started giggling happily.

When they reached Penelope’s room, she turned to give Josie one last kiss. It was soft and gentle, undemanding, patient. Because she knew now that there would be time for more.

“Thank you, JoJo.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Would you be interested in more?   
> I don't know whether to leave it at that or write them properly getting back together. 
> 
> Also, the magic stuff in the forest, doubt that's a thing in the tvd universe but whatever.


	5. Lesbihonest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Penelope and Josie talk. Happy ending? Lizzie is not back yet, but she will return sooner or later...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Somebody asked for angst, but these two deserve only happiness. I'm sorry, they suffer enough on the show, let me give you more fluff. 
> 
> That being said, I'm not satisfied with this chapter, I was going to re-work it, but I did promise you'd get something on Monday, and I'm leaving tomorrow so I thought you deserved some content before what might be a couple of weeks break.

**Chapter 5: Lesbihonest**

 

“Hey, Jo.”

Penelope stood outside Josie’s room. It was Sunday, and she had tried to talk herself out of this, but it clearly hadn’t worked. She had told herself she should wait a few days before going to talk with Josie about the night before, but Penelope was too impatient, and after she didn’t see Josie at breakfast she couldn’t bring herself to wait any longer.

On her way to Josie’s room, she had also told herself that if she waited Lizzie might come back and ruin her chance. So she decided to shoot her shot while the more annoying twin was still away.

Josie opened the door still in her pyjamas, blue pants and a white shirt with the word “Lesbihonest” – Penelope was reminded that the other girl kept her funny gay shirts for night time.  She looked sleepy and her hair was still messy from bed.

“I didn’t mean to wake you up, sorry,” Penelope said with a smile, enjoying the cute scrunched up face that Josie had every time she was woken up unexpectedly.

“It’s okay, what time is it?” Josie’s voice was raspy from sleep and Penelope had to close her eyes for a second because that voice always did things to her.

She had never been a morning person, except for when the two of them were together, because Josie in the morning was a sight to behold. Before being with Josie she had never imagined she could be turned on before noon but leave it to the Saltzman twin to change her mind.

Penelope chuckled, telling Josie that it was almost lunch time. People usually assumed Josie was a morning person, considering how she always looked bright and happy every morning despite being in first period. Lizzie and Penelope knew better though, Josie was definitely not a morning person. Her twin had to dragged her out of bed more often than not so that they would still have time for breakfast before class.

Penelope had discovered that waking Josie up was easier when done with kisses and light touches. Josie loved to cuddle in the morning, she would shift closer to Penelope and change from being the big spoon to tugging herself against Penelope’s chest, inevitably melting the girl’s heart at her antics.

On weekends, Penelope would let her have all the cuddles she wanted, but on school days she would gently coax Josie out of her slumber by talking about random things, and eventually she would slide out of bed, which would make Josie groan and protest while moving to try and tug Penelope back under the covers. Penelope would laugh and start luring her out of bed with kisses, slowly bringing her closer to the edge of the mattress until Josie would have to get up to be able to kiss her girlfriend.

Both girls missed that routine, Josie was certainly happier to wake up like that, and the whole thing made Penelope’s day start better than any other. Looking at Josie now, she hoped she could go back to that soon.

“Ugh, that’s late,” Josie groaned, opening the door more to wordlessly let Penelope in.

Penelope chuckled again and followed the girl into the room. Josie looked back at her and gave another groan, “Don’t judge. It’s Sunday, I’m allowed to sleep in.”

Penelope held up her hands and shook her head, “We both know you would have slept well into the afternoon if I hadn’t stopped by.”

Josie glared, then she went into the small bathroom connected to the room to get dressed.

“So, why have you stopped by anyway?”

Penelope hesitated as Josie came back into the room, now dressed in loose jeans and a white top. She looked down and her voice came out more insecure than she would have liked.

“I thought maybe we could talk about last night.”

Josie looked conflicted, and for a moment Penelope thought she would tell her it hadn’t meant anything and send her on her way.

“Okay,” she finally said, shrugging a little and sitting down on Lizzie’s bed, leaving Penelope to sit on Josie’s so that they were facing each other. 

Penelope didn’t really know how to initiate the conversation. Things were said the night before and kisses were shared, but would Josie still mean it all under the light of the sun? The night made it easier to open up, easier to talk in whispers and tell the truth without regrets. The sun was so bright and invasive, it put everything under the spot light, and many feelings were just too vulnerable to withstand that kind of exposure.

“So… Last night, we said some stuff,” she tried saying, hoping that Josie would pick up from there.

“Yes, we did some stuff too.”

Penelope couldn’t read the other girl’s expression, which was unusual and left her even more unsure of what to say next.

Then Josie looked down, a shy look passing over her face and her eyes started conveying conflict. It did the work for Penelope, whenever Josie would feel insecure, Penelope would make up for it by playing the part of the confident one, eventually helping Josie express herself as well.

“Did you mean it?” she asked with a slight smirk.

Josie momentarily looked up at the ceiling before her eyes settled on the bedside table.

“What does it matter?”

Penelope huffed, then said softly, “I did. I meant it.”

It was scary, putting herself out there like that again, but she put up a brave face and tried to meet Josie’s eyes.

“You’re the one who broke things off with me,” Josie chose to say instead of answering.

“At that point there wasn’t really much to break off, you didn’t have time for a relationship anyway.”

Penelope didn’t say it harshly, her voice was more hurt than anything else.

Josie finally looked up and her eyes told Penelope she was now upset. This was not what Penelope had hoped to achieve by coming here.

“You knew how things with Lizzie were since before we started dating. You always say that I never made you a priority, but you expected me to put you before my twin sister after we had been dating for a few months. It doesn’t work that way.”

Josie stood up, she was definitely angry and Penelope, for once, hadn’t meant to get a rise out of her.

“Yes, maybe I could have balanced it better, my relationship with you and my relationship with my sister. I was trying to, but it’s not like you stuck around for me to do better.”

She sat back on the bed and calmed down before saying a bit dejectedly, “Listen, I don’t blame you for breaking up with me. You do deserve more attention than what I gave you. But my sister needs me more than you do. You don’t have episodes of rage when you lose control of your powers and start destroying things. She does, and it scares her more than it scares the people around her.

“I wish I could have been a better girlfriend, but I couldn’t just put my sister aside because I fell in love.”

Josie wasn’t done, but Penelope had moved from her position and was now sitting next to Josie, putting her hands on either side of her face and pulling her in like she had done on Josie’s birthday.

Penelope gave her time to pull away, gave her time to reject her, but Josie just closed the space between them and kissed her fiercely. Josie’s kisses were always more passionate than Penelope’s, because where Penelope wanted to be gentle and make Josie feel how deeply she truly cared, Josie wanted to let Penelope know how badly she wanted her, how she missed her even though she might not have showed it enough when they were dating.

The kiss was brief, as Josie pulled back to talk, a little breathless from having just kissed the other girl hard.

“We need to stop doing this. We can’t just keep randomly kissing each other.”

“Why not?” Penelope whispered, bringing their forehead together in the most familiar of moves. Her hands were still on either side of Josie’s face, and Josie was holding on to the hem of Penelope’s shirt.

Josie closed her eyes in frustration. “We’re never going to move on if we keep this up.”

“What if I don’t want us to move on?”

“Penelope.”

The girl felt her name whispered right against her lips and she couldn’t help herself, moving in for another brief kiss. She captured Josie’s bottom lip between her own and touched it lightly with her tongue before pulling back.

“Work on this with me.”

Josie shook her head, but Penelope continued.

“I know I was the one who broke up with you. But you’re right, I shouldn’t expect you to put me before your sister after just months of dating. Just put yourself before her sometimes, that’s all I ask. It’s not the time you give me, JoJo, it’s the time you never take for yourself.”

Josie opened her eyes to look into Penelope’s, the girl still keeping them close.

“Yes, I was upset that Lizzie took up all of your time and you had very little left to spend with me. But what upset me most, and it still does, is how you never, ever put yourself first. Lizzie needs you sometimes, maybe she needs you a lot, but she doesn’t need you all the time. Yet you still follow her all the time, do everything to make her happy. What about your happiness? What about the things you want?

“I won’t ask you to put your sister second, but you’re a person of your own, you should come before your top priority. You can’t take care of others when you never take care of yourself. Be there for Lizzie, but please, just take care of yourself too.”

Both girls were about to tear up, so Penelope pushed back any tears that might have been coming and went to pull back, letting Josie go. But Josie didn’t let her, she kept her hold on Penelope’s shirt and dragged her into another kiss. This one started out hard, forceful, and then Penelope felt Josie relax in her hold and reach up a hand to stroke Penelope’s hair before it disappeared under it and curled around her neck.

The kiss then turned into one of the softest they had ever shared. Josie was now holding her gently, her lips were moving tenderly against Penelope’s, and her hand was massaging the other girl’s neck. Somehow, this kiss took Penelope’s breath away even more than the first one had. She lost herself in Josie and whimpered when the girl tugged at her bottom lip gently with her teeth before pulling away to breathe.

Penelope kept her eyes closed as she sucked her lip into her mouth to savour the taste of the kiss just a moment longer. When she opened them, she found Josie staring at her with a mesmerised expression.

“You are something else, Penelope Park.”

 

 

Needless to say, Josie and Penelope started dating again, they agreed to take it slow, though that didn’t last. Soon they were sneaking out of the dorms to make out under the stars like they used to. It was definitely against school’s rules, and they could very easily get in trouble, but Josie’s father hasn’t caught them yet, so they didn’t see any reason not take advantage of their luck. Plus, breaking the rules came with dating Penelope Park, and Josie wouldn’t have it any other way.  

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not promising anything, but more might still be coming. Though, I am going to visit my family for the holidays and will not have internet much, so y'all probably looking at the new year for the next update.

**Author's Note:**

> Leave kudos if you liked it! 
> 
> More is coming soon!


End file.
